


the soft side of the moon

by solohux



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-12
Updated: 2017-08-12
Packaged: 2018-12-14 11:54:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,837
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11782620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/solohux/pseuds/solohux
Summary: After suffering from a werewolf attack and being evicted from his home, Bill moves in with friend (and almost lover) Poe Dameron for support.





	the soft side of the moon

**Author's Note:**

> written for the gorgeous [@epselion](http://epselion.tumblr.com//)❤️ & their gorgeous ship featuring Poe & Bill. Thank you so much, darling!
> 
> more of their au can be found [here!](http://epselion.tumblr.com/tagged/bill-x-poe) ❤️

_The pale moonlight shining through the passing windows is of no comfort to Bill as he runs through the empty corridors of Hogwarts, overwhelmed by the sounds that surround him. His own quickening and panicked breath, his footfalls on the stone floor but most menacingly, the growls of the werewolf in pursuit._

_Greyback breathes heavily, and Bill manages to glance back over his shoulder to see the beast—transformed into his werewolf form—charging towards him on all fours, his elongated fingers like claws, black eyes looking as though they want to steal Bill’s soul from his body, and his teeth gnashing at the air._

_The werewolf is gaining._

_Bill gasps, knowing that he doesn’t have his wand with him, and continues to run, the scars on his face stinging at their creator’s approach. He wants to touch them but he keeps on running, wishing he could turn and fight and return the blasted favour to the beast who brought him a new fear._

_It’s a dead end. He stops, skids, turns. Greyback is prowling towards him at an agonisingly slow pace, and Bill wants to scream at him to get it over with._

_Bill closes his eyes and breathes, suddenly hearing nothing but the voices of his family calling out desperately to him._

_“Bill!” His mother and father._

_“Bill!” Charlie and Ron._

_“Bill!” Poe—_

_Poe?_

“Bill!”

The hand on Bill’s cheek is warm, _soft,_ but that doesn’t stop him from shoving it away from his scarred face the moment he wakes gasping, his legs tangled in the bedsheets. Still breathing like he’s running, Bill places his palm over his chest and tries to calm down, jumping when the familiar, soft hand that was cupping his cheek now finds its way over his chest.

“Breathe, Bill,” a gentle voice whispers to him. “It was only a dream. Only a dream.”

Bill blinks hard before looking up, finding the warm eyes of Poe Dameron staring worriedly at him, but Bill immediately feels safe, feels like he’s home.

“Poe,” Bill says, still out of breath, resisting the _ridiculous_ urge to check behind him just in case. “Did I wake you again? I’m sorry. You shouldn’t have to deal with this. I’ll leave, I’ll find somewhere else to live—”

“Hey. Don’t.” Poe frowns and shakes his head, but his dark eyes remain warm. “I had nightmares for years after my bite. Still do. Go easy on yourself.”

Before he’s realised, Bill is smoothing his fingers over the scars on his face, tracing them over his nose and down his cheek, wanting to curse for how he _despises_ such marks, but Poe grabs his wrist, bringing his fingers away from his cheek, entwining his own in Bill’s. Bill looks up, eyes glancing down the long scars on Poe’s face; that trail down his forehead and cheek, the opposite side to Bill’s, with more marks on his neck.

“Bill, it’s _alright_.”

Poe smiles at him, face framed gloriously by the morning sun shining through the curtains and by his own dark curls. Bringing Bill’s hand up, Poe gently kisses his knuckles, and Bill can _feel_ his magic fluttering around him.

“Breakfast is almost done,” Poe says, standing up, giving Bill a wink before leaving the bedroom and going into the kitchen, where Bill can see shadows of floating utensils and hear gentle clinking sounds as Poe, no doubt, uses his magic to prepare their meal.

Bill yawns, stretches, moving to tie his loose hair back into his ponytail, brushing it back and out of his face. Reaching for his wand on the bedside table, he gives it a lax wave as he gets up and the blankets and pillows on the bed rearrange themselves quickly, the curtains even swishing open to reveal the busy street below Poe’s house. He dresses quickly in an attempt to push away any lingering thoughts about being evicted from his own home and having to burden Poe with his mess, with his unease about the way he looks.

“C’mon, Pumpkin,” Poe teases, bringing Bill out from his thoughts. “Breakfast awaits!”

Bill chuckles, smiling at Poe’s use of the nickname and his impeccable ability to always make Bill feel _happy._

Adorning his maroon sweater with the bright yellow ‘B’ in the centre, a gift from his mother last Christmas, after noting that Poe is wearing _his_ —orange with a white ‘P’—and immediately feels the itchy material against him skin, Bill gets a sense of comfort from having something from home, something that _matches_ with Poe.

Breakfast is delicious and Bill eats his quickly, listening to Poe reminisce about their time working in Egypt together, talking about how they met, and the first time they kissed. It’s domestic bliss, Bill thinks, sipping at his tea and watching Poe animate his stories about how he once petted a hippogriff, even conjuring smokey shapes around him to help Bill imagine, but it’s the excitement and thrill in Poe’s eyes that Bill focuses on, unable to tear his gaze away from their sparkle. And it’s that _adventurous_ streak in Poe that makes Bill feel like he could take on the biggest challenge and win, prove his worth to the courageous Gryffindor all with Poe by his side.

After all of the dishes have been cleaned and tidied away, Bill retreats to his favourite corner of Poe’s couch, a book in his lap, and sits quietly, waiting for another day to pass, getting lost in the adventure of a novel whilst waiting to another one to come his way.

“I was thinking,” Poe says, popping up from behind the couch, perching on the low back. “That you and I could go out today. I’m running short on a few potions so we could go shopping for supplies, maybe have some dinner whilst we’re out—”

“No,” Bill replies almost instantly. “I can’t go out. Not yet. Soon, but not today.”

“Bill, _sweetheart,”_ Poe hops over, sitting down beside Bill, giving him a small kiss on the cheek. “You can’t stay inside for the rest of your days because of this. Your leave of absence from Gringotts is going to run out soon so you’ll have to go back to work anyway. Best to go out before that, right? I’ll be right beside you. No one, or _nothing,_ is gonna hurt you. Promise.”

“It’s not _that,_ ” Bill says, tucking stray red hairs behind his ear. “Poe, it’s—. It’s nothing.”

Poe leans in, lips curved into a soft smile. “So…?”

“Fine,” Bill says, shutting his book. “ _Fine._ You’re impossible to say _no_ to, Dameron.”

Poe chuckles, “Watch that mouth, Weasley, or I’ll be tattling to your mother.”

Molly _dotes_ over Poe, so Bill knows she’d have something to say about his gall so he rolls his eyes and giggles at Poe’s boldness but even his lover’s glorious smile isn’t enough to quell his rising anxiety about going _outside_ for the first time since his _change._ Nevertheless, he adorns his favourite green coat—lavish and bright—and buttons it up tightly, giving a small moan when Poe appears behind him, sliding his hands around Bill’s waist and pulling him into a hug.

With their hands entwined, Poe leads Bill out of the front door, though it takes a small whisper of _‘it’s alright’_ from Poe for Bill to fully emerge and close the door behind him, shutting him off from the place he’s learned to call home. Despite knowing the route to their destination, Bill lets Poe lead, always one step ahead, the only guide that Bill ever wants to follow.

But as they get further from their house, the more nervous Bill gets. It’s not only children that are staring at him but adults too; the children are merely the ones who voice their horrors aloud for both Bill and Poe to hear. Bill looks up from the ground to glance at Poe, seeing how strong and tall the other seems to be walking, unfazed by the stares that they’re getting as they walk along the streets, the cold breeze chilling Bill’s pale skin, making him shiver.

“I can’t,” Bill says, yanking his hand free of Poe’s to bring the collar of his coat over his cheeks, holding it in place. He halts, his gaze dropped to the floor.

Poe’s eyes turn softer as he turns back to look as his distressed companion, and approaches slowly.

“You can’t _what_?”

Bill closes his eyes for a long moment before opening them again, gesturing with his head. Poe follows Bill’s direction to where a passer-by is _staring_ at them, his chubby nose wrinkled in disgust, eyebrows drawn together in a frown, eyes locked on Bill.

“The way they look at us…Like we’re _beasts_.”

Bill turns away, unable to process his own words, stray hair falling from his ponytail and over his eyes, hiding the rest of his face from everyone’s view, but Poe quickly tucks the fallen copper hair behind Bill’s ear, his other hand working to gently pry Bill’s hands from his coat.

“Just don’t look,” Poe says, moving Bill’s hands down to his sides, setting his werewolf scars on show for the world to see. “Just look at me. Forget about everyone else.”

Bill hums quietly, settled by Poe’s words. He holds Poe’s hips, wishing he could simply melt into his arms and stay close to him, feeling _empowered_ by being so near such a strong werewolf; someone who shares his curse, someone who doesn’t let his bite define him.

“Poe…”

Poe pulls Bill to one side and down a small alley, under an arch and through onto a cobbled path where they’re completely alone, stopping underneath a bow of beautiful pink flowers that stretches from one building to the other, sheltering them.

“Because I know everything you are,” Poe continues, eyes shining, like both the beauty and the mystery of the moon are suddenly held in Poe’s eyes, shimmering, giving Bill more strength. “The rest doesn’t matter.”

Back against the wall, Bill leaps forwards, wrapping his arms around Poe’s neck and hugging him as tight as he can manage, hearing himself almost _purr_ as the embrace is returned. Poe’s arms are around his hips, sliding up his back and rubbing in slowly; up and down, up and down, before they pull away, and it’s as though the _magic_ around them can feel their affections, warming the air and cutting out the cold breeze that’s trying to part them.

Poe moves first. His hand cups Bill’s cheek, soft thumb smoothing across and down the scars on Bill’s face before leaning in to kiss him, taking their lips together in a gentle kiss, moving tenderly, _slowly,_ before taking his affections to Bill’s scars, dotting his passion all the way down to Bill’s jaw, nipping underneath it to where more scars sit.

“Oh,” Bill gasps, leaning his head back, allowing Poe better access. “Poe…You’re so…”

“I know, Bill. _Sweetheart_ ,” Poe says, lips brushing Bill’s, scars seemingly shimmering in the sunlight, like armour. “So are _you_.”

**Author's Note:**

> this piece goes with a comic created by [@epselion](http://epselion.tumblr.com//) which can be found [here](http://epselion.tumblr.com/post/157986454118/i-finally-finished-it-d-d-d-d-i-started) so please have a look at it, because it's simply beautiful ❤️
> 
> thank you for reading! my tumblr is [@solohux](http://solohux.tumblr.com/)❤️


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